Hold'em Essentials

Playing Gutshots

From draw poker days comes the adage: "Never draw to an inside straight." Since the pot odds in draw poker are normally far short of what is needed to justify going for an inside straight, this advice makes sense much of the time. However, in hold'em, because the bet on the flop is a small one and not a big one, the pot odds are frequently there to play for an inside straight, referred to as a "gutshot." When multiple players take a flop in a raised pot, there may be 10 or more bets in the pot, and many players realize that playing a gutshot can be profitable, especially when they factor in the additional bets they may collect when they hit their hand (implied odds). However, most players fail to realize that there are other considerations. You may not win 100 percent of the time when you hit your gutshot. The pot may get raised after you call, forcing you to spend another bet to take off a card, thereby reducing your pot odds. It is because of these other considerations that the good player realizes that gutshot draws are not always that attractive, and should frequently be folded. The following six hands taken from live play discuss some of these considerations.

Hand No. 1 ( $15-$30 game): You are in the small blind with the Q 10. An early-position player and a middle-position player limp in, as do you. There is $60 in the pot and four players.

The flop is K 9 3. It is checked to the middle-position player, who bets. What should you do?

Answer: In general, you need to have a much better situation than what you have here to chase a gutshot. This is a small, unraised pot, so there is no dough to chase. There is a two-flush on board, which could kill some of your outs and set up redraws at the river. You have no overcard outs. To top everything off, you are being bet into, which means that you can call now and still get raised from behind, so you could get tagged for $30 to take off a card. It would be way out off line for you to be doing anything other than folding.

Hand No. 2 ($20-$40 game): You are on the button with the J 10 and limp in behind an early-position player and two middle-position players. The small blind folds and the big blind raises. Everyone calls. There is $210 in the pot and five players.

The flop is Q 8 4. The big blind bets and everyone calls to you. What should you do?

Answer: This gutshot you can play. It is a raised pot, there is no two-flush on board, there is no open pair, and you have position, so you do not have to worry about calling a raise from behind.

Hand No. 3 ($10-$20 game): You are in the big blind with the 9 6 and get a free play after three early-position players, a middle-position player, and the small blind limp in. There is $60 in the pot and six players.

The flop is: 10 7 3. The small blind checks, you check, the first early-position player bets, and everyone calls back to you. What should you do?

Answer: You are getting 11-to-1 on your call. Your implied odds are even better if you hit your gutshot and it holds up. Nevertheless, folding is right because of the two-flush. With all of these opponents, the 8 could give someone a flush, so that kills one of your outs. Furthermore, if the 8 does not give someone a flush, anyone with even one club has a redraw against you at the river. The point is that you will not win 100 percent of the time even when you hit one of your four miracle cards. There are some lower-order concerns as well, which frequently occur when you have lots of opponents. The straight you are trying to make is not to the nuts. Someone with a J-9 would have a higher straight. The bottom line is that with the two-flush on board and lots of opponents, all kinds of draws and redraws are out there, and you will lose a lot of money when you hit but get beat anyway.

Hand No. 4 ($10-$20 game): You are in the big blind with the K 10. An early-position player limps in and a middle-position player raises. The cutoff calls. You call, as does the early-position player. There is $85 in the pot and four players.

The flop is 9 8 6. You check, the early-position player bets, and your other two opponents call. What should you do?

Answer: Call. You are the last player to act and do not have to worry about paying more than a single bet to take a card off. There is $115 in the pot, so you are getting better than 11-to-1 on your call to hit your gutshot draw. The flop is also rainbow, so your outs are all clean. The only downsides are that you do not have both of your cards working when you hit, which means that you will be splitting the pot a small percentage of the time, since occasionally someone else will also have a 10, and if someone else has a J-10, your 10-high straight will lose to his jack-high straight.

Hand No. 5 ($10-$20 game): You are in the big blind with the Q 8. An early-position player and a middle-position player limp in. Another middle-position player raises. The cutoff, the button, and the small blind all call. You call, as do the other players. There is $140 in the pot and seven players.

The flop is J 10 3. It is checked to the early-position player, who bets. The next player calls. The preflop raiser raises. The cutoff folds, the button calls, and the small blind folds. What should you do?

Answer: There is $200 in the pot and it costs you $20 to call, so your current pot odds are 10-to-1. You have four outs with any 9, so your drawing odds are about 11-to-1. An optimist would argue that you will collect additional money when you hit, so the implied odds are there to call. The problem is that it could get raised again, and none of your outs are to the nuts. If a 9 arrives, a board containing J-10-9 would give someone with K-Q a better hand. There is even an outside chance that a 9 might turn up and then a king, a queen, or an 8 might show up at the river, giving someone else the same hand as yours or even a better hand. The point is that you will not win 100 percent of the time even when you hit your hand. It may be close, but I would fold.

Hand No. 6 ($10-$20 game): You are in the big blind with the 10 9 and get a free play after an early-position player, a middle-position player, the button, and the small blind limp in. There is $50 in the pot and five players.

The flop is 7 6 5. It is checked to the button, who bets. The small blind calls. What should you do?

Answer: You can take a card off here because you have two overcards and the card that you need for a straight figures to make you a lot of money if it comes.